The Radical Mapping Project

$480
of $4,000 goal

The Radical Mapping Project (RMP) sprouted out of conversations between friends, Nazareth Velazco, Hannah Labonte, Madeleine Keller, and V Plotkin in the spring of 2017. As young adults who were all soon to graduate in fields of social justice we wondered what our lives would look like upon re-entering into the "real" world, one of utter political devastation. We tried to imagine how our social justice work would manifest or take shape, and if this work would even be sustainable in this day and age. More pointedly, we wanted to know how to maintain our radical beliefs (beliefs founded in principles of freedom and justice outside of capitalist/oppressive systems) while still managing to support ourselves. We wanted to know how to not only survive but thrive, spiritually, politically, and emotionally as activists and as people who identify as queer, trans, brown, and disabled.

Most importantly, we wanted to find people who were doing just this. We wanted role models to look up to who were living radical lives and existences; people who are working for justice freely, uniquely, and bravely. People whose identities and life stories are complex and who journeyed to be where they are now. We wanted to discover who else was out there so that we could know that living radically is not just a idealistic dream but a tangible reality. Finally, we wanted to share these lives in the hopes that others like us could be inspired, create their own spaces, and grow into radical role models themselves.

RMP has developed into a fieldwork journey and social justice networking project. September 2017 marks the beginning of a three+ month road trip around the US (Turtle Island) to visit spaces, activists, and organizations that participate in socially transformative work - especially those centering LGBTQ+ folks and POC in their leadership. Through conducting interviews, blogging, and photo documentation RMP will record the lives of activists today - their struggles, visions, needs, and victories. From worker-owned cafés to free schools, housing co-ops to feminist libraries, the project will focus on people and spaces that are facilitating new ways of connecting to each other and the earth that live out the values of sustainability, justice, and grassroots power.

Our GoFundMe campaign is meant to ensure we have the funds to carry out the project, which includes the research portion (Sept 1st through mid-December) and the project synthesis (completed by December 2018). We have been working hard and saving everything to embark on this journey. Extra support from others will help us ensure we have a safe place to stay, food to eat, and money for gas and car maintenance. We also hope some of this money can go towards project materials for the creation of our final project constructed from all the interviews and other ethnographic data we gather along the way. All funds gathered will be used for the completion of this project, which is intended to help bolster the radical activist community in the U.S., the strength of which is needed more than ever.

We also want to acknowledge that we have already been helped tremendously by our friends and families in order to get this far. We could not even dream of this project without the vast constellations of support we recieve from others, and we are so, so grateful for any and all contributions toward this end. If you want to support us, anything is welcome. You can see more about the project at our website , keep up with us on Facebook , and read our blog to learn our thoughts on the project as it unfolds.

Hello wonderful project supporters! We wanted to let you all know that our trip has ended and we are now in the "project development" phase - meaning we are figuring out what to do with all the amazing stories we gathered on our trip. In the meanwhile, we will be actively updating our blog and our Facebook. Today we posted an article on our 4th stop on the trip, KOWA Low-Power FM radio station in Olympia, Washington. Check it out on our site or our FB.

We also want to say thank you so much for your awesome support. You really made this trip possible and that is a blessing for all of us. Much love,
RMP

We're so happy to say we've made it to Denver, Colorado. We've conducted 8 interviews so far and we have another coming up this evening. Thank you so much to everyone who has supported us so far. Our next stop: Minneapolis! Please keep sharing our project with others and check our blog and Instagram for updates! We've got some good stuff in the works :)